Liang Wen-chong believes the experience of competing worldwide will aid him in the Asian Tour this year.

The supremely talented Liang finished second on the Asian Tour Order of Merit last season following three top-10s, which included two runner-up finishes. But with a strong desire to become a better player, the Chinese ace believes he will benefit greatly by testing his game abroad when the opportunity arises.

"This season is going to be very different from the previous seasons that I've played in. I'll be trying to play more events abroad and hopefully I'll be able to achieve results there," said Liang, who became China's first Asian Tour number one in 2007.

"Golf is a sport whereby you have to keep improving in order to do well. You've got to keep challenging yourself to become a better player and that means having to play more abroad to test yourself against the best players in the world," added the 31-year-old Chinese.

Last week, Liang competed at the Sony Open in Hawaii, which is part of the US PGA Tour and gave a strong account of himself with a top-25 finish.

Although he lost out to Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee in the Order of Merit race last season, the Chinese is expected to be in the mix again when the 2010 Asian Tour season commences in February.

Liang came close to winning his third Asian Tour title at the Barclays Singapore Open last November after finishing a single shot behind eventual champion, Ian Poulter of England.

With his second place finish in Singapore, he had a mathematical chance of piping Thongchai to the Order of Merit title but failed to secure at least a second place finish at the UBS Hong Kong Open.

He got into position by taking the halfway lead but failed to keep his foot on the pedal to eventually settle for 11th place and lost out to Thongchai in the merit battle.

"After Singapore, I thought I had a good chance of upstaging Thongchai in the Order of Merit. I fought hard and was the second round leader in Hong Kong but didn't do enough in the end. Thongchai deserves the win as he had a very good year," said Liang, who holds two wins on the Asian Tour.

It will be a season of redemption as well as high hopes for Liang and while he continues his pursuit for glory, he is only too happy to do what he loves the most since turning professional in 1999.

"I love to play golf. This is my job. Golf has changed my life completely. This is a very healthy sport where you can not only enjoy fresh air while playing, build up your physic and make new friends who share a common interest," said Liang.

Coming from a humble background where his parents were both farmers have taught Liang that only hard work will lead to greater rewards.

"They taught me to work hard. They worked from early morning till late evening every day so my practice routine is also almost the same. You have to work hard to be rewarded and you can only make your own future in the game," said Liang.